Ford knows the importance of proper vehicle care

When Cup Series cars roll through the technical inspection line on a given weekend, Pam Ford is there to make sure the playing field is level for all competitors. It's pretty straightforward: either you're legal or you aren't.

The East Kingston, N.H., native is also there to make sure that NASCAR's stringent safety rules are followed to the letter and any potential mechanical problems are caught before the cars take to the track.

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Ford, one of the unsung heroes of NASCAR, tolls in the trenches each weekend to make sure the racing goes off without a hitch -- mechanically, that is.

"My first and foremost job is as a template inspector," Ford said. "We do two rounds of inspection on Friday, work the Nationwide Series race on Saturday and then we do another round of inspection on Sunday morning and then hit pit road for the Cup race that afternoon."

It's certainly not hard to spot Ford on any given weekend. Long before she suits up to pace pit road, the five-foot, dark-haired dynamo can be found wielding templates and talking shop with team members during the inspection process.

"I work in the area of the nose, basically from the hood forward," Ford said. "Each pair of inspectors works a particular area of the car. We use the nose module and the identity templates for each manufacturer. We check to make sure they're in tolerance, and if they're not, we get them to that point and then turn them loose."

If you've ever seen NASCAR officials doing their thing in the tech inspection line, you'll know it's somewhat of an automated process. The cars move forward, templates are applied, tolerances measured and recorded, and the car moves on to another station.

There's also a degree of respect involved, Ford said.

"The job itself isn't difficult," she explained. "The degree of respect and dealing with the teams can be difficult. If you're fair and equal and treat everyone with the same amount of respect and dignity, everyone gets along great. If you don't, if you come off hootin' and hollerin' about why this isn't right, then you have problems. Rules are followed as closely as possible. As the teams come through, they want to know that we're doing our jobs the same for everybody."